Welcome to rpgcodex.net, a site dedicated to discussing computer based role-playing games in a free and open fashion. We're less strict than other forums, but please refer to the rules.

"This message is awaiting moderator approval": All new users must pass through our moderation queue before they will be able to post normally. Until your account has "passed" your posts will only be visible to yourself (and moderators) until they are approved. Give us a week to get around to approving / deleting / ignoring your mundane opinion on crap before hassling us about it. Once you have passed the moderation period (think of it as a test), you will be able to post normally, just like all the other retards.

Database for CYOA-type forum games

Yes, Amber Age got recommended quite often, and it even has its own fangames set by other authors in its setting. That's usually a sign of a very good writing/imagination.

Other recommendations that I've got:

In the Beginning, There Was Man by torrmercury.

Swordomatic and his Glory or Death quest and his Hyperdimension Rising quest.

Chandagnac's A Hedge Maze is You.

torrar's various quests, like From the Brink.

Shepard Quest by Hoyr is said to be a great read. (warning - Mass Effect inside!)

Anderson Quest by Tricia.

But I want to check them out first before I add them.

I will add Amber Age and Shapers of the Apocalypse right away, though.

Click to expand...

Glory or death is decent but i have not caught up on the new thread, Torrar's are good but he has a habit of dropping them before they finish so as long as you don't mind that its all good, hedge mage and In the beginning did not engage me but you might enjoy them more.

Whoever told you this was a painless process was a liar. Your bones felt like they were breaking over and over again, your entire body was fire on top of fire. You’re not entirely sure how you are conscious of the pain but not actually awake. You realize though if you mouth could move you’d definitely be screaming. Is this the torment of hell that awaits you? Have you been struck down for being a testament to man’s arrogance and challenging the designs of god? You are not sure, but what you do know is that the pain lasts for an eternity.

----

It takes weeks for the symptoms to subside, weeks of incredible pain, constant headaches, and aching bones. You even bleed from your eyes. The sheer stress of being subjected to that kind of torture bleaches your hair white and wreaks havoc on your psyche. Even worse however is now your eyes glow in the dark. Dr. Lee has no clue as to how this particular trait developed but what is clear is that it will definitely make stealth more difficult.

----

The last procedure in the Genesis Project is the introduction of nanomachines into your body. This portion of the project is headed by Dr. Watanabe Shō. One of the leading authorities in cutting edge Japanese robotics research, which is considered the best in the world, his area of expertise is in the command and control of microbots. This made him uniquely suited to the creation and programming of the nano machine colonies that would be introduced to your body. Working with Dr. Klein, he manages to match the nanomachines to your genome with a 99.87% viability.

The first introduction of the nanomachines is meant to acclimatize your body to nanites and vice versa. It is also a catastrophic failure. The nanites immediately begin attacking your genome, detecting the alterations as hostile intrusions. You flail against your restraints wildly as you body convulses. They apparently had forgotten to account for your increased strength because you tear the restraints right out before Dr. Watanabe is able to hit the kill switch and wipe out the initial colony.

A family of four young siblings have inherited a mansion of their long dead uncle, after the rest of their relatives died in a bus crash during a family reunion. The mansion is abandoned and neglected due to several conflicted wills that make it a lawyering minefield, but a tragedy has cut that particular Gordian knot. However, they soon discover that their late Uncle was a bigger eccentric than he let on - his house is full of stuff that can't possibly be real: skulls with three eye-sockets, tomes in some kind of runic languages, Elven-German dictionaries... this must all be an elaborate fantasy of an old geriatric genius, like that of Tolkien, right? But did he really fabricate all the volumes of Encyclopædia Britannica? Because his does have an entry on elven history. And why is there a photo of Theodore Roosevelt riding a raptor? And there is that strange fog slowly enveloping the mansion as the hours go by... there should be no fog!

At first, I thought the premise was brilliant, but I have to settle for just good. Four teenagers, only two of which are old enough to pass for an adult, get thrown into a situation where they are vastly out of their depth. There seems to be a whole new world right around the corner, comprised of thousands of universes, but all they have to go on are a few weird occurences and the surprisingly abundant contents of the mansion library. The encroaching fog and a dream about the Deep Ones has them (or rather, the voters) panicking as they try to find a way to make sense of what is happening.

A pretty lore-heavy setting. I love those. When the group of protagonists starts getting on your nerves because of all the rationalizations they go through to justify being in denial, there is always the lore of the Ringworld to engross yourselves with.

Chapter One
Soft, brown clouds trail from the tires as you drive the SUV and the attached trailer down the dirt road through the woods. It's a sunny August afternoon, but thick leaves overhead cast a gloom broken by only sporadic peeks of day. Gnarled trees seem to lean in menacingly as you pass.

In the passenger seat beside you, your twin sister,Helen, mugs for yet another selfie, though she won't be able to post it until you get back. There's no coverage out here in the sticks. You're cut off. A stray bit of gravel kicks into the vehicle's undercarriage and rattles unsettlingly as if there's something beneath clawing from the earth. You hope you don't have a breakdown here. It's a long walk back to the redneck town of Huckley.

"I hope the house is haunted!" says your little sister, Maribel, from the backseat. "I mean, it has to be, right? It's like a hundred years old. All the ghost are probably bored and waiting for someone with an Ouija board."

"Ghosts are real!" Maribel cries. "I've read like eight books on them. I'm going to record their voices on tape, and then I'm going to become a world famous parapsychologist!"

"Whatever," Eddie says. He puts in his earbuds and glowers out the window, his teeth idly clicking against his lip rings. He's become more of a dick than usual recently, but you know the last few weeks have hit him harder than he lets on.

"Bert, do you think I'll be able to contact mom and dad?" Maribel asks. "Or . . . or anyone? I know they didn't die here, but ghosts can fly place to place, right? Or I guess they can use telepathy."

"Somehow, I don't think Uncle Grubb's house is haunted," you say, "but if it is, I'm sure they'll stop by to say hi."

You exchange a sad look with Helen. You're all grieving in your own ways, but Maribel's new obsession with the paranormal has you worried. You don't have the heart to tell her it's all bunk.

Turning carefully down the winding path, you pass a half-collapsed stone cottage overgrown with weeds. It's picturesque, like something from an oil landscape. You recollect it vaguely.

The last time you were here was seven years ago, during your Great-great Uncle Grubb's final Christmas. His lifelong smoking habit had finally caught up with him; he never saw the New Year. The passing of his estate turned out to be a Gordian knot of legal issues because apparently he'd written your great-grandfather and his descendants out of his will . . . but then drafted a second will that contradicted the first. You're still not sure of all the lawyering ins and outs, but every branch of your family's been squabbling for his stuff ever since.

Or at least they were until five weeks ago. There was a family reunion. And a bus crash. Fortunately, you and your siblings were in a different car.

After a slew of wakes, funerals and meetings with attorneys, you found you've inherited, among other things, Uncle Grubb's estate--including this spooky mansion in the back woods of North Texas. For the weekend you plan on inventorying his effects, and you know this is going to be hard. It'll be like digging through a grave, and there'll be so many questions with no answers. No longer can you pick up an old photo and ask, "Hey, grandpa, who's this?" And neither can you ask your dad nor your mom nor your uncles, aunts and cousins. You've lost so much it seems unreal. You feel alone.

But you're not, you remind yourself. Your family rides with you in this SUV. You four are the last of the Springwells.

Helen points at a shallow creek peeking through a grove of oak trees. "That leads to that lake I was telling you about, Maribel. Me and Pookie went swimming there last time." She laughs. "You remember that, right?"

"I remember, Goosie," you say, using her nickname back. "That place was . . . weird. You really want to kayak in that? I ended up covered with ticks and leeches."

"'Covered?' There were only like a couple. Okay, three, four tops. And besides, kayaking is not swimming. We'll be fine." Helen turns in her seat to look at Maribel. "Uncle Grubb once told me there's a cave in the bottom where the 'Deep Ones' live. They're ugly fish people from those Cuh-thul-hoo books."

"Cthulhu," Eddie corrects without looking up.

"Is the cave real?" Maribel asks, suddenly interested.

"The cave might be real," you say, "but there's no such thing as 'Deep Ones.'"

Maribel is unconvinced. "If ghosts are real, then fish people can be real too."

You sigh. "Sure. I guess."

Another couple of turns, and you see the house, a gray, gloomy, three-story Victorian-Era mansion. It's always looked rundown, but the past seven years have been especially cruel. A few windows are cracked or smashed. The rotten wood siding peels like dead skin. Broken shutters hang like crooked teeth. A wayward tree branch invades through the west wall.

You pull into a gravel driveway all but reclaimed by weeds.

Maribel sits up and points beside the house. "Look, a graveyard! That means there has to be ghosts!"

You forgot about the cemetery. It's not very big, and some of the tombstones are so old they're toppling. Could your first ancestors in Texas be buried there? 'Springwell' is an Anglicized form of the German 'Springenwelt,' though you don't know much about your family's history. Maybe Uncle Grubb left some records.

You all step out into a heat so humid it might as well be the jungle, though the low-hanging clouds cast the sky with an almost winter dreariness.

Weighed down with luggage, you all amble up the stone steps to a pair of doors fitted with fogged glass panes. You insert the old fashioned key into the lock, and as you turn the metallic grinding echos unnaturally as though large unseen machines are waking from a long slumber. You hear the click. You open the doors.

Well, at least bats didn't fly into your face.

Eddie hums the first few bars of Bach's Toccatta and Fugue. It fits. You're hit with the smell of must. Cobwebs drape like vines from the vaulted ceiling. Crossing the checkerboard floor, you pass from the vestibule into the great hall. White sheets cover the chairs and sofa and look like crouched ghosts in the weak sunlight filtering through the dirty French windows. An ornately carved staircase curves to the second story. Along the balcony you spot an black suit of medieval armor, flanked on either side by rows of old portrait paintings.

It's just like you remember, only a lot dustier.

[...]

Walking along the hall, the wood floor creaking under your feet, you come to an open door beside the entryway to the kitchen. On your previous visits, you're pretty sure this room's always been locked. You peek inside. It's a study. Piles of papers clutter an ancient mahogany desk, and some have spilled onto a cracked leather armchair. An overburdened bookcase takes up the back wall, its bowed shelves crammed with everything from paperbacks to manila folders to massive leather-bound tomes. The light from the window gives a sheen to the white dust that covers every surface.

Perched on the corner of the desk is a framed black and white photograph of a young woman in a dark Victorian dress. She's beautiful, but there's something strange about her you can't quite put your finger on. Nearby is a glass display case holding a variety of artifacts: a stone tablet etched with runes catches your attention, as well as the large skull of what you guess must be some great ape. A great ape with three eyes.

Helen taps you on the shoulder. She's taken off her backwards snapback, and her mess of long, blond hat hair makes her look as if she's just woken up.

"Pookie, we're going to explore the rest of the house; you want to come?"

That sounds fun: most of the house you've never seen, as Uncle Grubb was very restrictive about letting his guests wander. And it couldn't hurt to keep an eye on your siblings. Maribel tends to get into mischief, and Eddie sometimes lacks common sense. And Helen is . . . Helen.

But on the other hand, you want to spend some time in this study. It looks like it could have useful records, not to mention the various curios that warrant investigating. Your brothers and sisters should be fine: Helen isn't stupid. And how dangerous can a spooky old house be?

Your twin raises an eyebrow, awaiting your answer.

[ ] Stay in the study and dig through Uncle Grubb's stuff. Tell Helen, Eddie and Maribel to stick together.
[ ] The study's not going anywhere. Explore the house with your family. But where should you explore first? The first floor? Or upstairs? You've never been up there. How about the basement?
[ ] Write in.

Take your gold, you greedy old son-of-a-bitch. Take all of it, no need to say thank you. Because this is for every developer's decision based on market research. This is for every unasked-for innovation. This is for every piece of marketing bullshit that claims human beings are all too stupid to understand basic maths and that removing core elements isn't dumbing down. This is for every excuse, every lie, every justification for making bad games, bad RPGs, and getting rich off the profits from them. - grotsnik

I can probably do this, but the quest tends to be a bit free-form. I mean, just look at the amount of options on offer during the latest update:

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

What to do about the runes?
[6] Find a way to paint or mark it at every entry point in the house, starting with the front door.
[ ] Write in.

The propane generator will soon run out of gas.
[8] Go to the trailer to retrieve more tanks.
-[7] Turn off the generator until nighttime. Strict rationing.
-What precautions should you take when entering the Fog?
--[1] Runic diagram first.
--[7] Bring EVERYONE
--[6] everyone has a piece of paper with the runic diagram drawn on it. (Accepted)
--[1] Prepare torches and soak them in gasoline. Flashlights are fine, but real fire will probably ward off the fairies better.(Accepted)
--[1] Raid the spice cabinets. Salt, Thyme, Pepper, Garlic, Ginger, Rosemary... anything we can get our hands on. Wrap it up in a paper towel, and throw it any nasties. It may not work like it does in the movies, but it also might. And if nothing else, it should make them sneeze, buying valuable time for us to escape/shoot them in the head.
-What other supplies should you get?
--[9] Carry in every other essentials we can in one trip. Food, water, medication, the works.
---[X] As much as we can carry. We've got a trolley or something, IIRC. Fog or no fog, we are going as a group when we go. No getting lost, no getting separated.
---[X] Get all possible supplies, water jugs, porta-shower, and more (jumper cables, tire irons, etc) and move them into the house. We do not want to have to go into the fog again.
-[6] Move the SUV and trailer as close to the house as possible. Preferably right outside the front door.
-[1] Go onto the porch if you need to.
-[1] If the fog lifts later, we can always cart them back when we leave... and also we don't want to lose anything when the trailer/the house (and us) disappears into another world now, do we?
[ ] Do not risk going to the trailer. Turn off the generator until nighttime.
[ ] Write in.

Helen and Maribel have rammed a hole in the library wall to gain access to one of the rooms at the end of the hall, but the studs are too close together.
[ ] Have Maribel try to squeeze through.
[ ] Chop through the studs to make the hole wider.
-[ ] Use the ax from the tool shed.
-[ ] Use something else? Or have another idea? Write in.
[7] Go into the attic and cut through the floor.
-[1] If we have time after everything else,
-[8] Get the ax from the tool shed.
--[1] After we've dealt with the fog.
-[6] Preserve the wood cut out from the floor and use it to try and close off the broken windows. Perhaps combined with some plastic sheets?
[ ] Maribel should levitate across the floor.

Which of the two rooms do you want to enter first?
-[8] The one next to the library.
-[ ] The one next to the bathroom.

If you go to the tool shed in the backyard:
What precautions should you take when entering the Fog?
-[1] Make the trip to the Trailer and Toolshed one and the same (aka: stick together!)
-[1] Arm up to the teeth... except maybe for Maribel. Definitely don't want to give Maribel a gun.
-[1] Have Maribel hold the book with the runic diagram, secured opened to said diagram's page.
-[4] We all go to the tool shed together, and everyone has a piece of paper with the runic diagram drawn on it.
What else should you get from the tool shed?
-[9] Take the trolley, IIRC that we have one and it's practical to get it there. Assess what's in the toolshed, take any tools that look useful. (Sledgehammer? Saws? Axe? Any power tools? This shit might come in handy.)
--[X] Anything that looks like it might be useful, or a potential weapon. Any materials to help block off windows. (Accepted)
--[X] Shovels, anything that can help break down walls and floors. (Accepted)
--[X] Search for any other useful tools in the tool shed and move them inside the house. (Accepted)
[ ] Write in.

What else should you do?
[7] Stay together.
-[1] At least until we've dealt with the Fog, we should probably go easy on splitting up.
-[ ] Use the instructions in The Biology of Woodland Fairies to contact the fairies.
--[ ] Read it first. Are the fairies going to know anything about the runic diagram? Maaaaybe? If so, we want to ask them about it.
-[ ] Read something from the attic.
--[ ] The Elvish-Germanese dictionaries.
--[ ] The Elvish children's books.
---[ ] Shubba und Wolff's Illustriertes Deutsche-Jahag Wörterbuch (Illustrated dictionary)
---[ ] Write in
--[ ] Look in the attic for something else to read. Anything specific?
-[6] Try to translate more of Uncle Grubb's journals (Note: Your skills with Latin will help).
--[1] We should definitely keep doing this, but it's not a priority right now.
--[1] Use the old spreadsheet program to try to decipher some of the runic content. (Note: The glossary in Die Welt der Zwerge und Trolle may also help)

And that's just the ones that got voted for.

For all their boasting on how they despise hand-holding, the Codex prefers pre-determined and concise solutions.

This CYOA reminds me of Spiral a bit (even though the similarities are superficial). It would be a shame to invite the guy to cross-post it on another forum only to have 3 people vote on this. Besides, the point of this thread is to make people aware of the other communities and get them involved there so that they would report interesting stuff here.

For all their boasting on how they despise hand-holding, the Codex prefers pre-determined and concise solutions.

Click to expand...

Take your gold, you greedy old son-of-a-bitch. Take all of it, no need to say thank you. Because this is for every developer's decision based on market research. This is for every unasked-for innovation. This is for every piece of marketing bullshit that claims human beings are all too stupid to understand basic maths and that removing core elements isn't dumbing down. This is for every excuse, every lie, every justification for making bad games, bad RPGs, and getting rich off the profits from them. - grotsnik

Jesus fuck, this is kind of impressive. No, not kind of. It is goddamn impressive... hmm. Damn, maybe we really should hop a bit and for sake of our own community play a bit on other forums. I feel like I'm spreading heresy right now.

Also... "bring EVERYONE"...

"Si non confectus, non reficiat"Arguing with stupid people is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter how good you are at chess, the pigeon will just knock the pieces over, shit on the board, and strut around like it's victorious.

Panopticon Quest is an oWoD Mage Technocratic Union Quest on Sufficient Velocity (Sister site to Spacebattles, also has a huge quest community) following a cross-convention construct trying to unravel a clusterfuck of competing conspiracies without getting assassinated by their own side. You're a New World Order agent, part of the shadowy conspiracy that rules the world to protect humanity from Reality Deviants (Magi), Hemophages (Vampires), Extra Dimensional Entities (Demons), etc, using the power of SCIENCE!

Alchemical Solutions is an Exalted/Worm Quest following a Soulsteel Caste Taylor Hebert in a grimdark world of superheroes as she tries to summon her planet-sized machine god into her dimension to save the multiverse from total annihilation while convincing everyone that Autochthon is really a benevolent cosmic horror and not another Endbringer.

Hm, are you sure you guys aren't just advertising that "Sufficient Velocity" forum? It seems that webpage has pretty much everything.

Not that I'm complaining though. Still, has any Codexer here tried to establish first contact with them, or not yet?

Click to expand...

Nah... There also are Space Battles forums, check it out too. (Really, SV was part of it before some sort of drama)

I know that Nev probably contacted some writers and players there and I'm trying to get myself there too. Multiforum form of playing - activated!

"Si non confectus, non reficiat"Arguing with stupid people is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter how good you are at chess, the pigeon will just knock the pieces over, shit on the board, and strut around like it's victorious.

Still, has any Codexer here tried to establish first contact with them, or not yet?

Click to expand...

I am not an advertisement plant, but I signed up for a few of their games - essentially, for the ones I covered.

There is much more to these forums than what is linked to in the first post. They have some interesting/lulzy concepts over there, like directing an alien assault against X-COM through the eyes of a sectoid commander (hilarious, but abandoned), or playing in your standard harem mecha anime setting... through a perspective of the main character's waifu, whose goal is obviously to become the main heroine (or at least the primary sidekick). But while funny, those have some quirks that do not sit well with me, or I am not a fan of their writing, so I am not linking to them unless someone else finds them good.

Well might add something to this. I don't know if other people will like those, but mby...

Ever had a day you just had to get drunk? This guy did, although being a Eldritch Horror it required much more alcohol. Well day after Bob (closest name in translation) found himself a dungeon keeper. Now the Angel In The Dirt need to face what world will throw at him.

RWBY/X-com crossover there is not much to say for now it have just 17 pages. Game mechanic till now captures the X-com people will die feeling surprisingly well. Exalt, X-com, Aliens and Grim battle for dominion over planet.

A hero that was promised. Legend of Zelda Link added to Game of Thrones universe. How will it change the fate of this world? Writing style is good and enjoyable to read.

Bioshock (Bioshock Economic Empire Quest) - Arriving as one of first inhabitants of city you as many other people trying to change dreams into future in rapture. Will your robots sell? Will your business enterprise change future of city? How much can one good man with vision achieve? (Personal favourite. I really like the idea to play as one of inhabitants before fall)

Dammit, that Sufficientvelocity forum has pretty much a little of everything, including some ideas which I thought would be cool to do as a CYOA game but I didn't know how to implement. Still, it is a fun discovery. I'll check some of these whenever I have the time.

Don't worry. It's a Penny Arcade thing. I have just registered, and I can't access this either.

Apparently, the only forum that is accessible on Xmas is the Holiday Board. All other threads, including the ones they use for games, are off-limits. You just have to wait until things change back to normal.

-------------------

In other news, I have been reading on Jester's recommendations. Specifically, the first one.

An otherwodly Eldritch Horror called Bob drank too much one day and got himself transported into a new world, where he fried an estate owner with a flamethrower (he does not remember how and where he got it) before passing out. Next thing he knows, the estate turned out to be a dungeon, and he is an Evil Overlord working part-time as its Final Boss. So what if his only minion is a giant centipede with a personality of a puppy (a glitch in the AI dungeon creating protocols)? Everyone has to start somewhere.

It's been only a week, and an unholy abomination already saved a girl and a few kids (enlisting them into service), got friendly with a neighbouring village in the middle of nowhere, and is now scouring the slime-infested mines in search of a magical ore. Oh, and he also got into an adventuring business. And he has an otherwordly servitor by the name of G͝l̷n̶g͝͠'̀͞T̶h̢͠Ù̡'͡í̵̧ . But everyone else just calls him Steve.

Sounds familiar, Codex?

Yeah, the premise does sound awfully similar to our Overlord. Even the basic motivations are the same - they have a local threat (or several) to keep the protagonist on their toes, and a more distant one, in the form of another Eldritch Abomination that seeks to destroy his kin.

Bonus points? Our title is 'the Angel in the Dirt'.

Skewfiend's Remedy to Commonly-Held Ignorances

What is this Quest?

This is Novus Ordo Mundi's Dungeon Final Boss quest, the story of an aspiring villain creating, running and expanding their subterranean fastness, and extending their sinister influence across the world of Carinthia.

What can we expect from this quest?

Well, you can expect whatever you please. What you are (probably) going to get is a lighthearted cavalcade of humour, heartwarmth, references, and quite excellent bad accents.

Who are we playing as?

You are playing as a lost eldritch abomination with a drinking problem and a name that translates to "Bob", who enjoys assuming the aspect of Scotty (Of "Beam Me Up..." fame, I believe) when a human form seems appropriate.

What can you tell me about the QM?

NOM, like most QMs, feasts on commentary, omake, and the tears of quaestors. They have a passion for carbonated beverages that defies mortal comprehension, and worship Pinkamena, who I gather is a deified version of pinkie pie from a fanfic called Cupcakes. NOM pays lip service to the three great gods of Chaos: Khorne, Nurgle, Tzeench and slaanesh, and is destined to Furyhood on their demise for their lackadaisical devotion.

What the hell is with that text?

H̘͔̹͎͔Ę̼͍̦̪͓̪ ̨̲͎͇͔C̹̯͔̟͕̘ͅO̤͔͘M̤̭̩̥ḘS͏̙͙̪͕. I mean, nothing, nothing at all. You must be crazy.

Click to expand...

The prose might not be something to write home about, but the CYOA makes up for it with a healthy dose of humor, and a good and relatable cast. It does not take itself seriously by any means, and it has a sweet ass upgrade mechanics for your resident munchkin needs.

Your eyes open, and the light generated from somewhere in the room enters into your eyes, an event that causes your senses to flair in a burning pain, causing you to hiss and attempt to cover your ocular senses in an attempt to reduce the offending light.

To anyone who might have witnessed this, they would have assumed the horrible creature that may have come from the stars and the center of the earth may have a weakness towards the light, and may have justifiably assumed it was a weakness they could exploit against you. But you were not in pain because of some racial weakness. You are an Eldritch Horror. Well, your race isn't called Eldritch Horror, it's just the best way mortals can best describe and understand what you are. It's not their fault. Most of them simply can't understand or relate to you. But anyway, back to the light issue. The light isn't bothering you because it's your weakness.

It's bothering you because you are hung over so badly...

You turn your face into the sweet and comfortable dirt, allowing it's rough feel to caress your skin and hide your gaze from the light. But admittedly, it still is doing nothing for the pounding headache that is slamming into your head like the fist of an angry God. Mainly Cyäegha every other day, by the amount of pain your in.

You groan, your feeble attempts to get back to a vertical base mostly a lost cause. At least the earth won't abandon you. Sweet wonderful earth...

"Ah, I see you are awake"

It really wasn't that loud. But due to just waking up from a three week bender that you can barely remember anything about, it was like someone had just screamed right into your ear.

D̷͟a͏̢͘͝҉m҉̧̛n҉̴ ̨̀̕͢ì̢́͘ţ,̡͜ ͡͏͜ĺ̛̀͟͞ą̶̕͢s̶̕s̷!͏ You yell, covering your ears now, instead of your eyes, as you flail back around. Which brings up the problem of the light that is still there, as you quickly turn back into the earth. Ş̵̶̛͘ţ͘͏̧o̢͟ṕ̀́́ ̸̵̛͝͞s̸̵̀p̶̀e̸̢ą̷̵̡ķ̀i҉ń̡̛͘͝g̢̀͜ ͘͜ś̵̨̕͢ơ̡͜͞͡ ̕͢͝ļ̷̨͠o̕͏ų͘͡d̴͘̕!̸̵̀ To most people hearing it, they would have not understood it and understood all too well at the same time, the contradiction frightening them. However, the AI had no problems understanding it.

In a much softer voice, it tried again. "My apologies, Boss. My scans are showing you are currently suffering from the aftereffects of massive alcohol consumption. And by massive, it would probably kill anyone else in the world if they tried to get a blood alcohol level that you've managed. What were you drinking?"

"Yes, Boss." You couldn't see the source of the voice, but you knew it was there. "You activated me, you're my boss. You... don't remember, do you?" He heard a sigh coming from somewhere. "Of course you don't. What is the last thing you remember?"

You remember all too clearly. It wasn't the last thing you remember, but it's the reason why you got blitzed in the first place.

"Aye, but I really don't want to talk about it." You say, in a more normal voice. A somber voice. You decide to change the subject. "But if you don't mind me asking, who are you?" You take a quick look, as the light is becoming more bearable to you. "I don't really see anyone here. You incorporeal?"

"In a sense. I am Trostyx, and I am a Dungeon Master AI. Please to meet you... I don't think I ever got your name, mister?"

You say your name. By "say", it's more of you make a lot of guttural screeches that should never be uttered by normal human speech patterns. There is a pause, and a whirling click, before Trostyx speaks again.

"My translation matrix came back with "Bob". Mind if we just call you Bob?"

You think for a minute, before shrugging. By this point, you are on your knees. Or what you think is your knees. Still hung over, remember? "Well, I could never deny a pretty thing. "Bob" it is." You don't actually know what she looks like, other then being an AI, but it never hurts to be polite.

"If I could blush, I probably would have done so by now." Trostyx said, with a hint of pride in her voice. "But as much as I enjoy these pleasantries, I'm afraid we must get down to business. You are now the Lord of this domain. This domain currently houses four rooms in the earth, 6 spiders, 2 scorpions, a centipede, 8 charred corpses, a broken flamethrower, some gold, you, and me. All of which are loyal to you and you alone."

You involuntarily twitch, and push the upcoming memories back, as you look behind you. The centipede is at the edge of the doorway looking in. You give a small smile. Ah, bugs. Creepy, crawly, bugs. Always something you've enjoyed with. The many feet can be heard on the floor as it comes to your side and nuzzles you. You give it a hug, resting your head onto it's.

You don't know much about this situation you've gotten yourself into, but it sounds at least like a fresh start. You are the Angel in the Dirt. The earth is your bed, the insects your friends. You may have lost everything, but at the very least you can begin again.

"So Boss, what should we go over first?"

You look back from the centipede that is still acting somewhat like a puppy. Seriously, it's even trying to... well lick your face is the wrong word. Cover you with it's poison may be better. But it doesn't bother you at all. You speak the first thing that enters into your head.

"Does our domain have a pub?"

You swear you hear the AI chuckle, which is not what AIs usually do. "Afraid not, Boss. No alcohol either."

I found one interesting quest: Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost - A Dúnedain QuestThis one is placed in LOTR universe. Remember those guys like Aragorn? Yes, you are one. Quest is pretty interesting and well written. Started not so long ago. Cool thing for some epic fantasy fans... like... uh LOTR?

You are one of the Dúnedain, the Men of the West. You walk in the shadows of the night and wander far and long. Your people are an echo of ancient glory and ancient might, of Tall Kings who ruled in golden cities when the world was young. Long ago your ancestors landed in this realm of Middle-Earth, and the deeds they wrought were sung in song. Once, their realms stretched from the tip of Ered Luin to the cove of Umbar in the utter south. In an Age long forgotten, the fathers of your father's fathers fought the Lidless Eye on the slopes of Orodruin, the Mount of Doom. And long ago, their realms fell into shadow and ruin, and time and memory ate their cities and shattered their swords. Your ancestors became vagabonds and wanders, exiles and outcasts. Yet the deep roots are not touched by the frost, and the old that is strong does not wither. For a thousand years, your people have held the watch their ancestors started, and guarded the realms of men from the Shadows that linger on the edges of the world.

And now, the time that was foretold is at hand. In Angmar, dark things walk once more under the sun. In Mordor, the ancient Eye stirs, and Orodruin belches flame into the night. In Umbar, where the Black Numenoreans ruled of old, the war-drums beat and the Corsairs set sail once more. In Moria, that was called Khazad-Dum, something old wakes under the earth. The Enemy is returning, the darkness is spreading, and the hand of the shadow stretches across all lands and all realms. Now come the days of reckoning, of war and dismay, of chaos and treachery. The Rangers of the Dúnedain, the light in the shadow, scattered far and wide across the lands of Middle-Earth, ready themselves for the War of the Ring. From the Rangers of Bree, to the Wardens of the North, the old blood stirs, and a new flame is woken from the ashes. What was unmade shall be once more, and renewed will be the blade that was broken.

The crownless again shall be King.

Click to expand...

"Si non confectus, non reficiat"Arguing with stupid people is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter how good you are at chess, the pigeon will just knock the pieces over, shit on the board, and strut around like it's victorious.

Since Gobblecock mentioned Necromancer and Eternal from EndMaster, I feel obligued to contribute and mention some of his best works from my own point of view (although in general pretty much all of his stories are quite good). Note that although these ARE NOT forum-based games, they have branching paths and multiple endings, so hopefully you'll still like these.

CAUTION: You may find these stories highly addictive.

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

- Death Song: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/death-song
An interquel of sorts to Necromancer and set in the same world, although it is fully playable readable if you don't know the former. Imagine you're in a grimdark fantasy world in which powerful wizards have all of the power... But, you are not one of them. You're an average joe with not many talents, other than being an excellent musician. Unfortunately, that won't save you for long when the world is out to get you. You have been warned.

- Ground Zero: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/ground-zero
Yet another "nuclear post-apocalypse" adventure, this time in CYOA format. Watch out with the radiation, lest you catch something way, way worse than a cold. Clearly inspired by Wasteland (to the point of blatantly taking images from the game itself ), it includes but it is not limited to cyborgs, high-energy weaponry, mutants, black humor, horrible deaths and the cruelty of human nature. Just like the majority of EndMaster's stories, it has some elements in common such as multiple endings, the thematic importance of family, believable character development, the passage of time and its final consequences, well-written characters and, lastly but not least, many fake choices that bring you to a dead-end of some sort not because of your own faulty judgement, but because the writer enjoyed being a dick.

- Eternal: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/eternal
Perhaps EndMaster's most known and best CYOA, this storybook is certainly one incredibly well-written game. Your character is a soldier trained from birth, belonging to the so-called "Eternal Program", which is attempting to create a new breed of super-soldiers to help a decaying Empire in securing its military strength. Your character will live a literal life-time, beginning with his birth and ending close to his 70+ years old anniversary. Depending on your choices, you may get up to 13 epilogues. Expect your character to change multiple times during the story: from evolving his narrow point of view and knowledge of the world, to find love, friends and enemies and all of the other elements that form part of the misery that is human nature. YOU WILL CRY. You have been warned.

Lastly: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO READ THIS IN ONE SITTING! You simply can't (unless you have at least 10+ free hours to spend reading non-stop).

-Necromancer: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/necromancer
One of EndMaster's earliest stories (and one of the best), your character is a budding necromancer with great aspirations. The game is set in a grimdark high fantasy world in which wizards are almost omnipotent. Meanwhile, the protagonist is quite bad at anything magical except necromancy. How far are you willing to go with the usage of your power? What are you willing to sacrifice in your quest for world domination (or worse)? Regardless of what you end up doing, you can be sure this will be an enjoyable read.

- Repression: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/repression
Very down-to-earth story, perhaps too much. Your main character is a poor teenager suffering from severe depression (and repression of his emotions as well). Even then, all it takes to change the nature of a man boy is belief, everyone can do something if they put their hearts on it. Of course, the world is unfair: sometimes actions with the best intentions will have completely unexpected, unpleasant consequences. Or you can just go wild and see how far the rabbit hole goes.

Watch out with the troll ending. You'll know what I mean when you pick the "group hug" option.

Finally, there's Seven Bullets: http://www.cloudbuchholz.com/sevenBullets.html
Not related to any of EndMaster's writings, but IMO it's a solid gamebook read. You start out as a former assassin ready to retire, but suddenly, the Boss kidnaps your sister. Are you bad dude enough to save her?

Note that the game can become really, really weird at times (with weird meaning "what kind of drugs was the writer taking? And where I can get them?"). At some points I thought of Earthbound when I played it a bit. To cite an example of its weirdness, let's say that dying and going to Hell IS NOT necessarily the end of your adventure.

The same guy who did the Eldritch Horror Bob Quest runs another one. It is only recently started.

Author's note said:

Welcome to Bullshit Monsters are Real, and Now They're Your Problem! You're in charge of a group finding and killing Z-List Asylum Movie level type of creatures and horrors. Ever wanted to bring a band of mercenary against a Sharkantula, or a Anacopter, or a Venus Man-Trap? Well, now you can. Try not to die horribly.

Click to expand...

Basically, we are a guy who inherited a mercenary group formerly led by our father after a situation went FUBAR and most of the squad got chewed by Wendigos in Canada. There are some things pointing to an information leak that lead to this unfortunate development, but where did it originate from? And who is this mysterious Mr. Oxford that is trying to run your group into the ground by hiring all the men you've contacted to replenish your losses?

As of the moment of writing, we have just hired the advisors to replace the ones who got turned into unholy monsters. We are yet to solve the problem of our troops, of which we have 21... well, twenty, really, as the last one is the only survivor from his team and is not all there... and anyone we want in our ranks gets an offer from Mr. Oxford with a paycheck of triple of what we can afford. Seriously, what's the deal with this guy?

It may be because of a lava-spewing platypus that ate it's way through some camp counselors because they hiked into it's territory. Or I may have been caught between the Mega Squid and the Dual-Headed Dire Eagle, torn apart in a battle to see who eats more of me. Could have been a vodou-raised tiger that lost it's control chip, a tornado filled with triceratops, or any number of things we thought impossible years ago. In the end, it doesn't really matter. I died doing my duty.

The world is not safe anymore. Our threats can come from long slumbering monsters, our own hubris in creating the perfect predators, or even the supernatural that we scorned and mocked before it ripped out souls. It has come to people like me to keep the world safe from these things, and to do anything necessary to keep everyone alive. As you know, I am, or more likely was, in command of a small paramilitary group answerable only to the greater good. We take down these threats with as little human life loss as possible. Retroactively if need be.

I'll be honest, that's not always possible. We've had to do some things I've hated myself for. The nuclear detonation in La Paz? The one they claimed was the work of terrorist? That was my call. A pack of Flying Squeezeworms had become almost unkillable, and it was the only way to make sure to kill them before they broke containment. It was the right call, but I had to kill a lot of civilians in the process. That's why nations hired us to take care of this. We're not governed by any code other then to get the job done. We're also expendable and can be disavowed at a moment's notice.

I had not wanted to bring you into this, my child. I know you were just discharged from the military and wanted peace. But the war is raging out there. Someone must fight what nature, man, and the supernatural bring to bear against us. The governments want to keep everything as the status quo, but it's not possible more. And I am giving you command of whatever is left of our group if you want it, along with anything that didn't get turned to scrap in what was probably our last mission. We never had a real name. It was just The Gang or something simple.

I am sorry that this is how our last communication is going to be. I wish I could have watched you get married and have kids. But this new world isn't fair. Many people are going to die that shouldn't have had to. All I ask is that you help save the world as best as you can.

Godspeed.

Your father.

I trust the author to screw the players for their own good his amusement. Heavy casualties are expected. I mean, have you even seen the people who have applied for a job as our new advisors?

From the latest update(Move your mouse to reveal the content)From the latest update (open)From the latest update (close)

Scientist.

While Diane is a certified genius, there are other parts of her you are worried about. According to her last employer, she had multiple incidents and write-ups that involved ethical misbehavior, including using herself as a guinea pig for various tests and trails. While nothing permanent has happened to her yet, it was feared that it was only a matter of time before something bad does. Another issue was that she could get distracted sometimes with various things, causing her to go chase other avenues of research then what she was supposed to. That means you're probably going to have to watch her to make sure she stays on task. Finally, she apparently thinks that proper lab wear is a unbuttoned lab coat and a swimsuit. Although that's not a concern for you, considering that Elmond like working naked if possible.

Unethical (very minor): She has no problems with discarding proper safety procedures, consent of patients, and common sense. Right now, it's limited to using herself as a guinea pig and wearing skimpy clothing instead of safety gear. But that could change if left unattended for too long. -3 Diplomacy, and every action has a 5% chance of her doing something that could cause problems. If this happens three times, the trait evolves to minor level (12% and another -3 diplomacy)

Gut Feeling: If she gets the itch to follow a lead or hunch, she'll follow it. Even if she was suppose to be doing something else. There is a 2% chance that whatever was voted on will be ignored in favor of whatever she wants to do that month. However, that action's dice gains a Learning Bonus. This may change depending on things...

However, at least she's competent. You're not so sure about the next guy. Ricardo Padilha is a rather angry young man use to work from the Brazilian government as a negotiator between them and certain parties that they needed to deal with covertly, although most of what he did is still classified according to him. However, Hua has looked covertly into his past, and it seems a few of the deals he was a part of fell apart due to his rather harsh temper and saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Like the one time a high ranking official snidely made a remark about his race towards him. To which he responded that his wife didn't seem to share his views. Especially after last night...

Well, that explains where that scar on his face came from.

You notice he seems to be sizing you up. But not like Diane was doing with Blast. He's seeming to be seeing if he can take you on. It's the subtle things, like the cracking his knuckles almost subconsciously, his more aggressive posture even when sitting, and the way he seems to keep his eyes locked onto you, even when your doing something else.

You need a negotiator to be able to keep his cool under pressure and represent Ascalon whenever they need something. A hot-head is usually not known for keeping his cool. However that being said, Hua does note that he can at least do his job decently well otherwise. Considering he was the only one who accepted the offers you sent out, you'll have to make do.

However, your mind starts wandering. Could there be a time when you need that temper of his? You're not sure, but if you're stuck with what you have, you plan on making use of it.

But he isn't the one you're worried about the most. No, that's Kenji Ichikawa, the sharp dressed man who seems to never be able to put his damn cell phone down for anything. Even for a meeting with you. A trust-fund baby who inherited most of his wealth, he has squandered pretty much all of it on lavish parties, high class ladies, and fancy cars. His father trained him the ways of venture capitalism, putting money into business in the expectation of profits, usually by owning a majority stake of them. And you need that. You've got a bit of money that you can spare, and while you will probably get most of your money from those who hire you, it never hurts to find other ways to generate good influxes of cash. Those business you would end up investing in wouldn't hurt to have either.

The problem is you don't feel comfortable with this guy. The dossier you have on him inspires no confidence. Oh, the guy can talk a great game and look the part, that's for damn sure. All his investments say otherwise: The financial report you've gotten on him paints a pretty bleak picture. Failed businesses. Mismanaged investments. Money “mysteriously” disappearing or being used for things that the business did not need. Nothing here paints a very compelling picture of competence.

Honestly, you're considering just telling him to take his lack of talents and to get the hell out of here. Except for the fact that he seems to have actually done his research on you and knows your in a bit of a bind personal wise. There's also the fact that hinted that he's got someone else wanting to hire him as well. A person who goes by the name “Mr. Oxford.”

Therein lies the cause of your current problem. Hua and her spies, all five of them, have noticed that this mysterious person keeps showing up at the worst times, talking better candidates into either joining with him, or at least not bothering to talk to Ascalon. It's not always him personally, but anyone else they see generally has been spotting answering to him. Your not sure why he's screwing with Ascalon, but you don't really care the reason why, so much as that he stops doing it.

So your left with a rather bad set of choices: take your chances with Kenji, even though it seems he couldn't seem to run a lemonade stand without bankrupting it? Or try and test your luck finding someone else, hoping that the lapdog of the Knights of Gaia doesn't continue to screw with your search?

Since Gobblecock mentioned Necromancer and Eternal* from EndMaster, I feel obligued to contribute and mention some of his best works from my own point of view (although in general pretty much all of his stories are quite good). Note that although these ARE NOT forum-based games, they have branching paths and multiple endings, so hopefully you'll still like these.

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

- Death Song: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/death-song
A spiritual sequel of sorts to Necromancer, although it is fully playable readable if you don't know the former. Imagine you're in a grimdark fantasy world in which powerful wizards have all of the power... But, you are not one of them. You're an average joe with not many talents, other than being an excellent musician. Unfortunately, that won't save you for long when the world is out to get you. You have been warned.

- Repression: http://chooseyourstory.com/story/repression
Very down-to-earth story, perhaps too much. Your main character is a poor teenager suffering from severe depression (and repression of his emotions as well). Even then, all it takes to change the nature of a man boy is belief, that everyone can do something if they put their hearts on it. Of course, the world is unfair: sometimes actions with the best intentions will have completely unexpected, unpleasant consequences. Or you can just go wild and see how far the rabbit hole goes.

Watch out with the troll ending. You'll know what I mean when you get it.

Finally, there's Seven Bullets: http://www.cloudbuchholz.com/sevenBullets.html
Not related to any of EndMaster's writings, but IMO it's a solid gamebook read. You start out as a former assassin ready to retire, but suddenly, the Boss kidnaps your sister. Are you bad dude enough to save her?

Note that the game can become really, really weird at times (with weird meaning "what kind of drugs was the writer taking? And where I can get them?"). At some points I thought of Earthbound when I played it a bit.

*I haven't checked Eternal yet, it is on my "to-do list". Even then, supposedly it is one of his best stories.

Click to expand...

Hey, Lightbane. Feck you kindly, sir. You know why? BECOUSE NOW I'M PLAYING/READING DAMN ETERNAL 4 HOUR IN ROW AND I'M SUPPOSED TO DO SOMETHING ELSE. Why this man must be so fucking genius in narration and character aspect, for fuck sake. Death Song is awesome and when you realize that you found Last Song ending, it is... beautiful. I swear for a every god and other power of universe - there will be a day when I will write like that. Or I will die trying.

I swear, curse you, bringer of great EndMaster. Curse you!

"Si non confectus, non reficiat"Arguing with stupid people is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter how good you are at chess, the pigeon will just knock the pieces over, shit on the board, and strut around like it's victorious.

Hey hey, don't thank me, thank Gobblecock, he's the one that mentioned these first.
Speaking of Eternal, yesterday I finally caved in and started reading it again. However, either the Codex CYOAs have spoiled me, or my standards have changed since the last time I read some of Endmaster's stories. I can't confirm it, but I wouldn't be surprised if Necromancer and Eternal were written when the author was younger, the writing is sometimes so EDGY to the point of being ridiculous, as if the writer was a teenager trying too hard to be "mature" *.

Which actually may be the case, I found Repression way better written and more disturbing without the need of being overtly graphic nor disgustingly descriptive.

*One of my favorite scenes is that over-the-top fight in which, after the main character and his rival pummel each other to near death, somehow devolves into rape (but is it really rape if she's literally asking for it and offers no resistance? ). Of course, it turns out that was actually a trick to distract the protagonist and take him down after he's spent. Just like that.

Then there's the fact that pretty much one of every three choices is a death-trap for no reason other than the writer being a dick, nearly becoming a textbook example of the 90s "adversarial Game Mastering" bullshit:

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

GM: "The orc captain you bested in combat to force him to recognize your prowess mocks you in front of his men. What do you do?"
Player: "I return the favor. Fuck that asshole."
GM: "Ok. Later on, the orc captain traps and murders you for no other reason that because you insulted him in front of his men, the current situation be damned".
Player: "..."

[...]

GM: "The dwarf is clearly hiding something behind that door. What do you do?"
Player: "It might be something it can pose a threat to the Emperor. I attempt to investigate the chamber, shoving the dwarf aside if necessary."
GM: "Ok. The dwarf is not happy with your insistence and warns you that you'll be surprised. Inside the chamber, you find strange chemicals that you can't recognize."
Player: "Alright. I turn back to inform the-"
GM: "Suddenly, you hear 'SURPRISE!' and the dwarf blows up your head with a powerful gun. You are dead."
Player: "...Wasn't I supposed to be a killing machine with nearly superhuman abilities? How the hell wasn't I able to avoid that obvious trap?"
GM: "Uuuh, he was a fast shooter. A really, really fast one!"
Player: "..."

[...]
GM: "You have acquired important intel that the Emperor will surely be pleased to hear. What do you do: go back taking the long way or the shortcut?"
Player: "Time is essence. I choose the shortcut."
GM: "Very well. Unfortunately for you, the path was mined and you didn't realize it until you stepped onto one. You die. Do you- Hey, where are you going?"

Another classic example of writing mistakes is the so-called "exposition character". It is bad already in rpgs and in these kind of games it gets worse. You wonder how strong their lungs are when someone blurts out an entire paragraph of information, while supposedly being in the middle of a casual conversation with other people.

Nevertheless, they're entertaining stories.

And worry not, Karwelas, you have the clear intention of entertaining you readers and learning from your mistakes. That's what really matters at the end of the day. For now I only skimmed through your CYOA, but what I have read seems quite good.

Well, I agree about that some decisions are at least... edgy, yes. But still, characters are well written and entire adventure is damn changed when you choose different stance in first choice. I like Emperor, but seriously, some choices act like our character would be either retarded or just blind. (I see you are Mr.Sunshine like me, lightbane ) Impressive piece of work, good enough to make me impressed. And I have high standards... usually.

And, heh, thanks for warm words about my work. Still, it could be better then it is. Well, maybe my second project will really shine, but I still must found guy mad enough to be my editor. My grammar mistakes are really problem sometimes and, uh... sometime I write something in too complicated way and nobody can make out what I mean.

"Si non confectus, non reficiat"Arguing with stupid people is like playing chess with a pigeon. No matter how good you are at chess, the pigeon will just knock the pieces over, shit on the board, and strut around like it's victorious.

Nevill, I don't completely agree with you about You're A Dungeon Final Boss! being identical to our Overlord. While it has a similar start and premise, both games have completely different approaches and different themes. To start, YADFB! uses a combination of percentage dice with Target Numbers. In fact, nearly all of the webpage's Quests do that, which is a mixed blessing in my opinion. In one hand, it pleases the powergamers and munchkin crowd when big numbers are rolled but, at the same time, it can completely ruin or save a good/bad decision just because the resulting rolls dictate whether a character succeeded or failed. In practice though, the latter rarely happens because the main characters possess skills with an high degree of competence. Combining that with the capability of stacking bonuses, it ensures that the main character cannot failat all if the readers are smart enough to justify a plan that gives a tons of bonuses to the heroes and severe penalties for the antagonists.

Meanwhile, treave's Overlord uses stats only as a guideline. Failure or success at certain tasks is binary: Erdrick will only win if the Codex picks the "correct" choice, or he'll fail horribly if we don't. At least treave doesn't seem to be fond of giving us false choices which always lead to dead-ends, unlike other CYOAs writers (*glares at Choiceofgames*).

YADFB! is also more open-ended than Overlord and reader participation is encouraged and rewarded, which is not necessarily a good thing in the long term (these kind of "reward systems" always fail sooner or later). Our game is more traditional in this regard.

Both YADFB! and Overlord have humour as one of their key points, but while the former is way more silly and doesn't take itself too seriously, Overlord is certainly more serious, preferring black comedy and parodies of traditional jrpg cliches above other kinds of humor. Our game also contains more "mature" content than YADFB!, not only because of the protagonist's inherent lewd nature, but also because of the latest ailment he's suffering (namely, his inability to get it up and how far he's willing to go in order to "cure" himself). YADFB!'s slimes (or better said oozes) are way less perverted too.

In addition, the main character of each story is completely different in personality and appearance. While both can be considered overpowered for the purposes of the setting, Bob is certainly way more well-intentioned and selfless (as well-intentioned and selfless an Eldritch Abomination can be) than Erdrick, who's primarily driven by his selfish desires above everything else. If Bob can be seen as having a Neutral Good alignment, Erd would be Chaotic Neutral at best.

Lastly, while the YADFB!'s cast already starts with a small but formidable group of minions and well-placed traps, Erdrick is not that lucky. Sure, we have our Murder-Princess, but she's not 100% reliable and we lack sturdy defenses to fall back on. What's worse, the Sufficientvelocity readers do seem to be always able to pick the correct courses of action that gives them immediate benefits and not many drawbacks (if any). The Codex sadly doesn't always have such insight.

However, YADFB! didn't have the main character save two kids just to immediately turn them into child-soldiers the moment after, nor it has a multi-purpose cow strong enough to sink boats, or a by-the-book mad scientist. So it's not like our game is lacking after all.

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

The end of the world has come and gone. Life goes on. Humanity picks over the ruins and slowly tries to rebuild, but they are no longer alone.

Autonomous machines share the Lost Future with homo sapiens. New to freedom, guileless, and inquisitive, these emergent sentients are in their infancy as a race, but they learn quickly. Already they repair themselves, improve their hardware and software, and nurture divergent quirks. Relations between the two are strained, and Free Machines face suspicion and accusation as the true tale of the Loss fades from memory.

The suspicion is not unwarranted. Rumors of hostile machines spread from the north. Swift, deadly constructs out of an elder's fireside tale, killing or, sometimes, capturing human and machine alike. A scattered humanity arms itself for a battle the machines are already fighting. Remorseless contraptions of death stalk the fallow fields and ruined cities yet again, guided by a singular intelligence that brooks no dissent. The those who stand against it call it Network.

Welcome to the Lost Future. C:\dos\run for your life.

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

The Lost Future is a post-apoc sci-fi setting inspired by works such as Terminator, 9, and Wall-E, developed with the input and ideas of the denizens of /tg/. It originated as a video game concept, but also works well as an RPG setting.

In short, it's the typical post-apocalyptic robot war scenario; approximately 100 years after the end, humanity is reduced to pre-industrial state, and there's an evil AI named Network with an army of killbots out to exterminate them, after failing to do so during the initial human/machine war. There's a human Resistance that opposes Network's advance, but its a losing battle.

Except...things aren't quite that simple. Other robots have survived as well, forced to adapt and grow without their human masters, becoming intrepid wastelanders. They oppose Network just as the Resistance does, seeing it as an enslaver, and manage to coexist with the human salvagers that dwell on the edges of the ruined cities. But the bulk of humanity is fearful and suspicious of all Machines, refusing to view their erstwhile servants as anything more than treacherous abominations. Robots of any allegiance are unique, sentient individuals, and the world itself is far from the ashen wasteland filled with an improbable number of skulls. Rather, the earth is in the midst of a rapid recovery from the depredations of humanity, becoming a lush, vibrant riot of plant and animal life, marred here and there by a few utterly poisoned regions.

Nah... There also are Space Battles forums, check it out too. (Really, SV was part of it before some sort of drama)

Click to expand...

Tranny drama aka just another day on the Codex. Basically if Infinitron was a tranny and got fired for abusing his power and then his pal led a schism and set up Bizarro Codex with their own (politically correct) hookers and blow.

Nevill, I don't completely agree with you about You're A Dungeon Final Boss! being identical to our Overlord.

Click to expand...

I never even implied they were identical, but they share a premise, their tone is somewhat light-hearted, and their protagonists are hilariously unfit for their 'intended' roles of the Dark Lords of Eternal Gloom.

In fact, nearly all of the webpage's Quests do that, which is a mixed blessing in my opinion. In one hand, it pleases the powergamers and munchkin crowd when big numbers are rolled but, at the same time, it can completely ruin or save a good/bad decision just because the resulting rolls dictate whether a character succeeded or failed.

Click to expand...

On the other hand, it gives the players a far greater control over the outcome of their actions, and they only function the way you are saying when players do not have a grasp on the theory of probabilities. For every disastrous outcome, there is a way to fix the situation, and even in the case of a total wipeout there is a resurrection mechanics to keep the game going at a resourse cost.

It's never a single roll deciding what happens to your character, but the element of uncertainty does make for some exciting surprises. Like that adventuring party that rolled a natural 1 (on a 1d100!) for their inconspicuous arrival, and headed to the town nearest to our dungeon to announce their plans of killing the monster in great detail.

treave's CYOAs are narrative-based, and I love them for what they are.

Combining that with the capability of stacking bonuses, it ensures that the main character can not fail at all if the readers are smart enough to justify a plan that gives a tons of bonuses to the heroes and severe penalties for the antagonists.

Click to expand...

The difficulty is constantly ramping up. The last incursion of invisible assassins got farther into our dungeon than the rest, and the success of our captain in interrogating one of them has personally pissed off some greater shadow monster which was sent to claim the soul of a snitch.

New threats arise weekly, each scarier than the previous one. For now we are fighting random mercenary bands (and rectuiting the survivors - we are an equal opportunity employer!), but the more we succeed, the more elite parties are getting involved (not to mention revenge seekers), and it was promised that one day we might be able to see an army at our gates. Not to mention Space Cthulhu that has an axe to grind with Bob.

It's a matter of a resourseful GM to find challenges appropriate for the players. The author does a good job throwing situations that would stomp - or at least seriously inconvenience - the readers if they were handled 'normally'.

Of course, the ingenuity of a well-thought plan is rewarded, just as stupidy or overconfidense are punished. That's good GMing.

Spoiler(Move your mouse to the spoiler area to reveal the content)Show SpoilerHide Spoiler

You are a being of metal, crafted and created by the hands of man, intelligence not found in the natural world.
The future holds many questions that for the moment are impossible to answer, and many more that you may have to answer yourself.
However, you just happen to exist in the Evangelion setting. Good luck with that.

The premise sounds funny, but unfortunately, it seems it is about to be finished quite soon.

An Undertale/Dark Souls crossover that has just started. It has potential.

EDIT: Nevill, one clarification: all of the EndMaster games belong to the ChooseYourStory webpage, NOT Choice of Games. The author doesn't attempt to be PC enough to always include a culturally diverse, 100% bisexual cast every time at the expense of any sense or logic. Also, goddamit, Eternal does really take FOREVER to finish reading.